Wednesday, December 1, 2010

When I announced my one month hiatus from ye olde blog, I promised that I would be back with ideas for the upcoming holiday season. So, as promised, here is idea number one. The filling really isn't much of a breakthrough, but the crust definitely is. The pastry recipe comes from Top Chef Just Desserts, appropriately veganized, of course. It is easy (as pie) to roll out, is durable, and bakes up beautifully. The filling is really up to you. I did something very similar to this recipe, but you could easily make it more festive with the addition of some cranberries and roasted chestnuts.

METHOD1. Whisk dry ingredients together, then cut margarine into the dry ingredients. Work with your fingers until it resembles coarse bread crumbs.2. Whisk flax seed into the water, then add to dry ingredients. Work into a soft dough.3. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least 1/2 hour.

METHOD1. Bring a pot of salted water to the boil. Add turnips, parsnips, rutabaga, potato, and carrots. Boil for 5-7 mins, or until softened but not mushy. Rinse with cold water, drain, rinse, and drain. Set aside.2. Heat oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Saute onions, celery and garlic for 5-7 mins, until translucent. Add 1 tbsp of wine (or stock) and reduce. Repeat twice with remaining wine.3. Add flour and spices to the pan and mix well. Then slowly add soy milk, mixing well. Add enough to make a gravy that is not too runny. Add cooked veggies, mix well, and season to taste. Set aside to completely cool (or stick it in the fridge).

To Make the PiesPreheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.1. Roll out the dough on a floured surface to 1/8 inch thickness. Cut out twelve 7" circles (I cut around a cereal bowl), re-rolling dough scraps to make more circles. Place about 1/2 cup of filling off centre, brush a little water around half of the circumference, then fold in half. Press dough together along the seam, then press with a fork.2. Cut two slits in the tops to allow steam to escape, the place on the baking sheet. Bake for 35-40 mins, or until golden brown.

I put half of these in the freezer, unbaked, for later. I will report back how they fared, and the method for thawing and baking.

15
comments:

Yum! Welcome back. This recipe reads very much like real empanadas, so it should freeze very well for quite some time. To thaw it, I'd say leave it out for an hour before they're needed (wouldn't recommend microwave at all).

Have you tried the pastry recipe with Earth Balance and shortening? Is there much difference in texture? Just that I'm from Australia and shortening is much harder to come by than margarine, but I could make a special trip across the city is it's worth it!

Mmmm these sound so good! Quick question... I'm a make ahead kinda gal for eating on the go... Do you think these would freeze and reheat well enough? They sound like a PERFECT replacement for how I used to keep hot pockets in my freezer.

I made these last night with different fillings, and they were amazing. I used half shortening and half margarine, because that's what I happened to have in the house, and the crust was perfect.

For the fillings, I did half with a yellow split peas - cauliflower - chick pea filling with indian spices, and another with a sauteed mushroom / onion / seitan filling. Both were delish, but the mushroom ones were really exceptional.

I also tried the tip on making individual dough balls and then rolling them out to avoid having to cut circles, and that worked great.